US Says 40 Tankers Moved 16 Million Barrels Through Hormuz as Skepticism Shadows Scale
Updated
Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 23
US Says 40 Tankers Moved 16 Million Barrels Through Hormuz as Skepticism Shadows Scale
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 23
Summary
U.S. officials said 40 tankers transited the Strait of Hormuz on Friday night through a southern channel off Oman, moving about 16 million barrels to global markets.
The Pentagon-backed effort is meant to claw back passage control from Iran and keep oil flowing after the strait was largely closed in late February, but it still restores only a fraction of prewar volumes.
Analysts and the UK Maritime Trade Operations center questioned the scale, with one expert saying only three or four vessels have crossed daily in August versus 35 inbound and 39 outbound in February.
Roughly 20 Navy warships, including two carrier strike groups, are supporting the operation, which experts say is costly, hard to conceal at larger volumes and risks provoking Iranian attacks.
Brent crude stood at $94.39 entering the week, and Trump’s tougher rhetoric toward Iran has added to fears of a longer conflict even as the administration argues it has prevented a sharper price spike.